


A Day of Firsts

by michiiGii



Series: Rika's Coffee Shoppe - MysMe barista AU [2]
Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, F/M, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-18 14:00:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13683129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/michiiGii/pseuds/michiiGii
Summary: Yoosung's first day working at Rika's Coffee Shoppe.  He meets a special someone.Incidentally, Seven and Saeran are there.Rika's Coffee Shoppe fics can be read in any order.





	A Day of Firsts

“Are you ready, Yoosung?”

The college student had never heard such a loaded question, before.  He had spent hours studying the Coffee Shoppe’s 30 different menu drinks.  He had practiced cute writing for the cups when he wrote each customer’s name.  And the night before, he had stayed late with Zen, learning how the expresso machine worked.

But was he ready?

“I am ready…to throw up,” he offered, smiling weakly at the cafe manager.

Rika tried not to sigh at that, closing her eyes for a moment to collect herself, before smiling serenely at her younger cousin.

“How can you throw up if you did not have breakfast?” she asked sweetly.

“You didn’t eat breakfast?!” Seven asked, aghast.  However, neither cousin heard him, so he continued doing his morning prep work.

“Maybe I shouldn’t start, today,” Yoosung suggested, tugging nervously at his uniform apron, “I should keep practicing drinks in the back room…”

“Last week, you made most of the drinks that we served,” Rika pointed out, reaching behind her cousin to adjust his collar, “You’re going to be fine.  The twins will be here with you, all day.”

Yoosung still hesitated, glancing around the cafe.  What had once been a quiet, comfortable study place for him, now felt like a battlefield.  Saeran and Seven were still in the process of prepping the coffee house for the day, while Yoosung and Rika spoke behind the counter.  Saeran was tidying up the flavoured syrups and milks, making sure they had enough for at least their morning rush.  Seven was cheerfully drawing hearts on the windows, his red and pink markers squeaking on the windowpanes.  The sun was barely up, and there were no customers, yet, but already, the coffee shop was buzzing.

The cafe that his cousin, Rika, managed with her fiance, V, had only been in business for a couple years, but it had already developed a strong standing within its community.  It was within walking distance of Yoosung’s campus, SKY University, and was visible from the main road that most businessmen took towards work.  The attractive, but generally genteel baristas were a hit with both students and workers alike, and within such a short time, there were already a good number of regulars frequenting Rika’s Coffee Shoppe.  The humble cafe had become quite popular.

And, of course, the cafe made a point of decorating their building and customizing their drinks whenever a holiday rolled around.  This was always attractive to trendy coffee-drinkers and new couples.  It didn’t take a genius to know that they would be busy on Valentine’s Day.

Yoosung was beginning to regret that this was the day he would begin his part-time job.

“I don’t wanna do this, anymore,” Yoosung whimpered, giving Rika sad puppy eyes.

“Well, your mom will kill me if I let you quit now,” Rika said firmly, eyeing her cousin’s bangs, “You’re growing up and need to start earning your keep.”

“I thought doing well in school was ‘earning my keep’,” Yoosung whined, fresh tears appearing at the corners of his eyes.

“It was, until school got expensive,” Rika sighed, fumbling in her pockets for a moment.

With a happy smile, she pulled out two hairpins from her pocket.  Cheerfully, she stuck them into Yoosung’s hair, effectively keeping his bangs out of his eyes.

“What’s that for?” Yoosung asked, frowning up at his forehead.

“We can’t let you shed your hair into the drinks,” Rika explained sunnily, “That would be gross.”

“There are little hearts on the pins!” he exclaimed irritably, not at all happy.

“It’s Valentine’s Day,” Rika shrugged.

“I’m a  _man_ ,” Yoosung protested, balling his hands into fists, “Men do not wear heart hair pins to keep their bangs out of their eyes!”

Rika opened her mouth to argue, then stopped when the tinkling of a bell signalled that the cafe’s door was open.  Turning to the entrance, she smiled when she saw who it was.

“V!  You’re early!” she exclaimed, hurrying across the room to embrace her fiance.

“Happy Valentine’s Day!” V smiled, returning her hug with an affectionate peck on the cheek.

The two of them shared a cuddly moment, together.  Yoosung could hear Seven pretending to gag, knowing that Saeran was pointedly ignoring the couple while he continued to work.  V and Rika  _always_ had to be that gross PDA couple; this sort of behaviour was normal for them.  But that wasn’t what had Yoosung annoyed, this time.

Even from across the room, he could see that V had heart hair pins holding some of his hair back.

“Oh, V, you look so festive with those pins!” Rika praised, touching them lightly.

They laughed together, then Rika gave Yoosung a pointed look.

“Look at my sexy man,” she purred, earning a warm smile from V.

“I hate you both a lot, right now,” the student said bluntly.

“His eyes look so dead,” Saeran muttered to his brother.

“I know,” V said lightly, responding to Yoosung.  He knew Yoosung loved him, albeit deep, deep down.

With an air of finality, Rika hooked her arm with V’s and looked back at Yoosung.

“We’re going to head out.  You’re going to be fine, Yoosung,” she said soothingly, all of her teasing gone.  She liked to poke fun at her younger cousin, but she honestly wanted him to succeed, and she knew that being a barista in her shop was a good place to start.  Even if he never got into business or food service, he would still gain things like social skills and personal confidence.  She had high hopes for Yoosung.

“Don’t worry about him,” Seven said cheerfully, walking up to Yoosung and draping a friendly arm around his shoulders, “I’ll make sure he doesn’t take more than he can handle.”

“That worries me, a little,” V said softly, barely moving his lips so that only Rika could hear.

“Don’t go, noona,” Yoosung pouted.

“I’ll visit you at lunch,” she replied, letting V lead her towards the door, “Have fun!  You’ll be fine!”

Longingly, Yoosung watched the couple leave the cafe; neither of them looked back.  Yoosung guessed they already had all day planned out for the two of them.  They had always been sweet to each other, but ever since they had gotten engaged, they had gotten worse.

“We’re gonna have fun, today, Yoosung!” Seven said optimistically, clapping his friend on the back, “C’mon!  One of our regulars is gonna come right at opening time; we have to be ready for her.”

“Really?” Yoosung glanced at the clock.  “…we open at 7am.”

The blond looked at his friend questioningly, then froze when something about the redhead’s appearance registered in his brain, “Um…”

“She likes to come to campus early so that she can get some last-minute reading done in the library,” Seven explained, leading his friend by the shoulders to the counter, “I bet she’ll order her usual!”

“Um…Seven?  Did you always have your hair like that?”

Somewhere along the line, Seven had pulled his hair up into twin pigtails, held up in place with scrunchies that had been decorated in pink and red hearts.  And the redhead managed to make it look good.

“Don’t I look  _fancy_?” Seven chirped, framing his face with his hands to look as cute as possible, “Real men dress up for Valentine’s Day!”

“Am I the only one that didn’t plan for today?” Yoosung blurted out, frustrated, “…and is that why Saeran’s hair is white, today?”   _Saeran usually only dyes his hair white when he’s mad at Seven…_

“…it was supposed to be pink,” Saeran sighed, touching his hair gently.

“It’s ok, little bro, it  _does_ look pink,” Seven said softly, patting his brother on the shoulder sympathetically, then turning and giving Yoosung a terse stage whisper, “Don’t point out his hair; he’s  _sensitive_!”

“You know, I can hear you…”

Yoosung and Saeran shared a sigh.  Seven was always well-behaved around Rika and V, but the second they left, he was back to his mischievous self.

Again, the storefront bell tinkled.  With a start, Yoosung looked to the entrance eagerly; maybe Rika had come back for him.  Instead, a girl about his age was there at the door, cautiously coming in.  She was looking straight at him; with a gulp, he straightened his back.  For some reason, instinctively, he did not want to disappoint her.

“Good morning…!” she said hesitantly, not recognizing the new barista at the register, “Um…”

The student cast her eyes across the counter, then relaxed when she saw that Seven and Saeran were also there.

“Hey!” she said warmly, smiling at the two of them, “Are you guys open, yet?”

“We can’t open without you,” Seven quipped smoothly, returning the smile as he hurried to join Yoosung’s side, “The usual?”

“Yes, please!” she answered, and, with a polite nod to Yoosung, she moved to the end where her drink would eventually be delivered.  She leaned slightly onto the counter there, conspiratorially drawing close to Saeran.  Yoosung could barely hear her whisper, “Did Seven do something bad, this morning?”

“It’s supposed to be pink…”

“Oh…”

“What’s her usual?” Yoosung asked Seven, already picking up a to-go cup.

“A mocha,” Seven answered, sagely nodding, “Her ‘hot chocolate with a kick,’ she calls it.  Do you think you can handle it?”

Yoosung hesitated.  This would be the first official drink that he would serve to a paying customer.

“…yes,” he finally answered, nodding firmly.

A mocha wasn’t hard…it was half hot chocolate and half coffee.  It was a chocolate latte.  He could handle this.  This was not.  Hard.

“If we observe the humble Yoosung in his natural habitat, watch how his hands shake as he prepares the espresso with  _extra vigor_ ,” Seven said to the others in his best nature documentary voice.

Yoosung spared a moment to glare balefully at his friend before continuing with his work.  She called it “hot chocolate with a kick” right?  So…maybe he should put more hot chocolate, but with a stronger shot of espresso…

“Crikey, what a beaut’.  Such adorable crinkles on his forehead.  Really brings out the red in his hairpins.”

“First of all, your Australian accent needs work,” the girl said, chuckling lightly, “And second of all, be nicer to him!  It’s his first day, right?”

“Thank you!” Yoosung said gratefully, giving her a relieved smile, “This is my first job and he’s being a jerk!”

“Brother’s always a jerk,” Saeran muttered, playing with one of the cardboard cozies.

“True…” Yoosung and the girl nodded at the same time.

Surprised at their synchronicity, the two of them looked at each other, again.  The eye-contact they shared was…oddly poignant.  Quickly, they both looked away.  Saeran noticed the exchange; Seven, however, was too busy adjusting his hair.

“I think these scrunchies may have been a mistake,” Seven said, trying to tighten a pigtail.

“You were a mistake,” Saeran muttered.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“I have your mocha…” Yoosung picked up the drink, carefully walking it towards the end of the counter, “Right…he-”

“I can’t believe you would call me a mistake!” Seven declared dramatically, flinging his arms wide for emphasis.

In an attempt to walk around Seven before handing the girl her drink, Yoosung was in the perfect position for Seven to knock the cup out of his hand when he moved his arms.  While nobody could do anything but watch, the cup was flung to the side, spinning rather majestically through the air, until it landed firmly against Saeran’s front.  To everyone’s collective horror, the hot drink splashed up against his chest, then seeped slowly down his front, inescapably becoming one with the sturdy green fabric.

“GRAB A TOWEL!” Seven screeched, running into the back room, “A TOWEL!”

“OMG, Saeran, I am so sorry!” Yoosung cried, rushing to grab napkins from the counter.

“Saeran, are you okay!?” the girl exclaimed, handing Yoosung more towels, “Quick, take the apron off before you burn!”

“It’s okay…” Saeran said, too calmly, slowly taking off his uniform apron.

The article of clothing came off easily, revealing that Saeran had absolutely no brown liquid on his shirt front; the apron had suffered all the damage.

“Oh, you’re not hurt!” the girl was relieved.

“You’re okay!” Yoosung exclaimed, then quailed when he got a glimpse of Saeran’s expression, “U…um…”

“It’s not your fault…” Saeran said slowly, tilting his head to the side, “You didn’t flap your arms around a hot drink like a maniac…you’re okay…it’s okay…everything is o…kay…!”

The door to the back room started to swing open.

“I found some towels-” Seven started, sticking his head through the doorway.

Immediately, Yoosung slammed the door shut again, preventing Seven from coming back into the same room as his brother.

“His hair is white, Seven!” Yoosung yelled through the door, “ _His hair is white!_ ”

A blood-curdling screech came through the door, and then all three of the remaining youths heard panicked footsteps running away.  Momentarily, a back door slammed, and a car was heard starting and peeling away from the parking lot.

And then there was nothing but silence, and hot drink quietly drip-dripping onto the floor from the apron in Saeran’s arms.  The girl stayed unmoving at the counter, her eyes trained on the two baristas.  Saeran was completely still, staring at the ruined apron in his hands.  And Yoosung was completely frozen, unable to look away at the silently enraged boy in front of him.

Neither the girl nor Yoosung had any idea what they should do.  All they knew was that moving was not an option. 

_Tick…_

_Tick…_

_Tick…!_

Finally, Saeran shifted his weight.  Smoothly, he leaned forward, and put a sticky, warm hand on Yoosung’s shoulder.

“You should make our beloved customer’s drink for her,” Saeran said silkily, an inscrutable smile on his face.

“But…but the mess-” Yoosung started.

“Just agree with him!” the girl hissed.

“Now, now…no reason to worry,” the white-haired boy shook his head unhurriedly, still smiling, “The apron is fine.  It is only chocolate and coffee.  And I shall wipe up the floors.  I simply need a mop.  From the back room.  I am going to go to the back room…”

The hand on Yoosung’s shoulder suddenly turned into a vice; before he knew it, the blond was facing the other direction, holding a new cup and already part-way through pouring hot chocolate.  Saeran, however, left the room, taking the dripping apron with him.  Glancing at the floor, Yoosung saw a trail of brown droplets marking Saeran’s path along the floor.  

He tried not to think of dead bodies.  

He hoped Seven would be okay.

“…Ok…here’s your mocha,” Yoosung said, after a long, somewhat nervous silence, interrupted only by pouring sounds, “Oh!  Do you like whipped cream?”

“I love whipped cream!” the girl answered, and all tension in the room was dispelled by her smile.

Heartened, Yoosung cheerfully swirled a generous amount of whipped cream onto the top of the cup, and placed it before his customer.  She reached for it, but without thinking, he placed a hand on hers, stopping her.

There was something in that touch.

Reflexively, they both moved back.  She cradled her hand against her chest for a moment, stunned.  He felt his face flushing, but to cover it, he grabbed the thing that he had stopped her for:  the chocolate syrup.  With a bashful smile, he decorated the top of the whipped cream with a chocolate heart.

“There.  For you,” he said, motioning to the cup with his free hand.

“Thank you!” she laughed lightly, and hurried to take a sip of the drink, “…oh!  It’s really, really good!  This is the best mocha I’ve ever had!”

“Really?” Yoosung leaned against the counter eagerly, “You mean it?  You’re not just saying that?”

“I love it!  It’s delicious!” she nodded, her smile brightening, “Thank you…oh…are you okay?”

She put the drink down and put her hands out towards Yoosung, not really sure what she should do with them.

Because suddenly, Yoosung was crying.

“You really like it?” he asked again, tears overflowing from his eyes.

“Yes!  It’s really good!  Why are you crying?!” she exclaimed, wondering if maybe she should hand him some napkins.  Or one of the towels Seven had found.

“That was my first drink, ever!” Yoosung sobbed, vainly wiping away his tears with his hands, “And you liked it!”

“Yes, I love it!” the girl said, laughing a little incredulously before making herself stop, “You don’t have to cry!  It’s good!  …Really!  I love it!”

“Today is my first day, and I spilled a drink, and my coworkers both left me alone…!” Yoosung hiccuped, trying to get control of his tears, “And Rika’s marrying such a dweeeeeb…!”

“Aw…Ok, breathe!  Just breathe!” the girl handed him some napkins, comfortingly patting his shoulder, “There, there…cheer up, Yoosung!  Look on the bright side:  You are never going to forget today!”

“Th-that’s a good way to look at it,” Yoosung sniffled, finally getting a hold of his emotions, “Oh…I’m so sorry…You must think I’m such a loser…”

“No, no…I think you’ve had a really trying first day on the job.  But you’re not a loser!” the girl smiled sunnily, “Please, cheer up!  You’re doing really well!  Yaaay, Yoosung!”

Yoosung laughed shakily, at that.

“Are you my cheerleader, now?” he sniffed, looking bashfully at the girl.

“Sure!  Look at Superman Yoosung, choosing Valentine’s Day as his first day on the job,” the girl grinned, “He’s so cute, and so tough!  He saw a challenge, and he took it!”

“Aw…” Yoosung humbly waved the compliments off, “…Although, I am a bit cute!”

“Yeah, you are!”

There was a short, strained pause, then the two of them burst out laughing.  They were both being ridiculous.  So ridiculous.  And she was being so sweet.  And he was being so cute.  So sweet, and so cute…

Finally, the air in the cafe seemed to relax.  Yoosung knew that he was being ridiculous.  The rest of day would go a lot smoother; he knew it.

“…So…you come here a lot?” he asked shyly.

“Every morning,” she nodded, blushing lightly, “Um…you’re going to work here, now?”

“Yup!” he replied, “Every…uh…every morning!”

Both of their faces reddened.  They would be seeing a lot more of each other, they knew.

And both of them were 110% okay with that.

And that’s how Yoosung met his MC.

_-fin-_

**Author's Note:**

> Art was done by Digital Scratch. You can find her at digitalscratch-arting.tumblr.com


End file.
